New Behind-the-Scenes Featurette on the Fight Scenes in THE BOOK OF ELI

A behind-the-scenes video detailing the stunts, particularly the fight sequences, in the Hughes Brothers’ upcoming The Book of Eli recently popped up on Yahoo! Movies. Basically, it’s 2 ½ minutes of directors Albert and Allen Hughes, star Denzel Washington, and stunt coordinator Jeff Imada (fight coordinator for the last two Bourne flicks) talking about standard stuff like the intensity of the sequences and how amazing Denzel was at learning the techniques/doing his own stunts. Toward the end, they also get into some semi-interesting analysis of Eli’s fighting style and how it relates specifically to the character and his motivation. If you check out the vid, you might also catch a few non-behind-the-scenes clips that weren’t in the trailers.

Over the years, I’ve learned to be wary of high-concept actioners, but The Book of Eli is one I’m really looking forward to. It’s got a pair of interesting directors in the Hughes brothers and two fantastic lead actors in Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman. On top of that, post-apocalyptic wastelands just do it for me.

The Book of Eli is in theaters January 15, 2010. To see the featurette in HD, click over to Yahoo! Movies.

For those just tuning in, here’s the official synopsis:

In the not-too-distant future, some 30 years after the final war, a solitary man walks across the wasteland that was once America. Empty cities, broken highways, seared earth-all around him, the marks of catastrophic destruction. There is no civilization here, no law. The roads belong to gangs that would murder a man for his shoes, an ounce of water…or for nothing at all.

But they’re no match for this traveler.

A warrior not by choice but necessity, Eli (Denzel Washington) seeks only peace but, if challenged, will cut his attackers down before they realize their fatal mistake. It’s not his life he guards so fiercely but his hope for the future; a hope he has carried and protected for 30 years and is determined to realize. Driven by this commitment and guided by his belief in something greater than himself, Eli does what he must to survive-and continue.

Only one other man in this ruined world understands the power Eli holds, and is determined to make it his own: Carnegie (Gary Oldman), the self-appointed despot of a makeshift town of thieves and gunmen. Meanwhile, Carnegie’s adopted daughter Solara (Mila Kunis) is fascinated by Eli for another reason: the glimpse he offers of what may exist beyond her stepfather’s domain.

But neither will find it easy to deter him. Nothing-and no one-can stand in his way. Eli must keep moving to fulfill his destiny and bring help to a ravaged humanity.